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Chapter 75 – Part 1

Following Aziram’s invitation, we set foot inside the house built into the large tree.

The interior was made up of round rooms carved out of the tree, which was warped in some spots. Their lined up furnishings, such as the long table, the closet, the chairs, and the sofa were, of course, all made of wood. And on display along the walls and the ceilings were small vases and wreaths and garlands filled with vividly colored flowers.

The wooden furniture had been coated with a varnish or something similar, so it gave off a beautiful luster.

As we entered the house, a new scent of flowers different from the ones outside drifted into our noses, not letting us get bored for even a moment.

「It’s our first time having human guests. I wonder what our house looks like in your eyes」

Marial giggled like an innocent young girl.

It might be rude to say this about a woman, but Marial’s real age was probably numbered somewhere in the hundreds. However, she was an adult woman whose features were well suited for expressions and gestures a young girl might have.

For starters, they led us to the guest rooms that they would be letting us use.

Just in case Selina or I might have not wanted to share a room with the opposite gender, they had prepared two separate rooms for us.

A lamp shaped like a daffodil flower was placed by the bedside near the wall, and hanging on those walls were tapestries that depicted Yggdrasil and the many residents of Ente Forest.

Alongside one wall was a bed made of an elastic, bamboo-like material, and when I tried sitting on it, it had a good firmness, so it would probably be very comfortable to sleep in it.

And although Selina wasn’t able to hide her disappointment in having a room separate from mine, she definitely wouldn’t foolishly let any complaints leak out, especially after they’ve been so kind to us.

I really like that about Selina.

I kept my weapons with me, and since my clothes and other belongings were kept inside a magic bag, I didn’t need to leave any luggage inside the room they had prepared for me.

After they finished showing us to our rooms, they wanted to offer us some tea, but Fio said our time here was limited, and she pushed us out of the house in a hurry.

It seems we would get a chance later on during dinner to talk more with the married couple.

Just before we left the house, Fio stopped me and Selina in the living of the first floor to give us wallets made of a material that somehow had both hard and soft qualities to it.

It was the currency that was used for shopping here in Deep Green. When I looked inside, there were small magic stones and flower seeds inside.

There were also various small handicraft and the specialty products of each race, which we were told were used for bartering. Oh my, how considerate of them to give this to us. With a mountain of gratitude held in our hearts, we headed out as a group into the already bustling streets of Deep Green.

Ropes and suspension bridges crossed between the trees and the houses like spider webs, and hanging from those webs like moths were numerous small stalls and booths.

Apparently it seems the shops were all privately owned stores, and the moth-like booths would move up and down along with the passing customers, so they could call out to them and attract them to their store.

Sometimes, due to having too much momentum, they would end up passing over customers, but I think that was a part of their charm.

「Hmm, perhaps because this isn’t a festival that is held regularly, the energy of everyone gathered here is also irregular.

The sensation of being able to directly consume food is a major part of these people’s culture, so I want to try finding something to eat and drink first」

One of the things that changed about me since I was reborn as a human after being a dragon for so long, was that I became able to enjoy the act of eating food.

In Galois, I had used every excuse I had to go out onto the streets along with Selina, and we went eating out everywhere.

Selina had laughed with a shiny and happy smile, and always came with me to various places to eat and indulge in my gluttony, but she would also sigh about how she had gained a little weight as well. Right now, those memories were very nostalgic, as this scenery instantly reminded me of those times.

It’s easy to assume that Wood Elves are vegetarians, but they normally eat the meat of animals that live in the forest, so the stalls and the restaurants lined up along the roads served plenty of meat dishes.

Hmm, it seems I had been too hasty when I’d assumed that theirs was a culture that didn’t use much fire.

It seems that they used fire spirit stones to produce heat, which allowed them to conduct all kinds of cooking methods, such as stir frying, grilling, simmering, steaming, boiling, and frying.

If they used fire spirit stones instead of real fire, then concerns about their houses, trees and flowers catching on fire decreased greatly.

It goes without saying that the fire stones weren’t used for just cooking.

「Let’s see, there’s plenty of fruit sticks and grilled mushrooms, but men prefer eating meat, right?」

「Anything is fine. Fio, if it’s your recommendation, then I’m sure it’ll be delicious. Isn’t that right, Selina?」

「Fufu, the Wood Elves cuisine, is it? I’m really excited to try it. I had the impression that they only ate vegetables, but it seems that’s not true」

「If you two have such high expectations, then I’ll give it my all. It’s not like we’re eating only vegetables, but it’s certainly true that we eat much less compared to other species.

If we’re going to eat until you’re both full, then we’ll have to go around and visit a lot of shops」

As Fio said that, she clenched her small fist, and her face filled with determination.

Because she’s so inspired to help us, her friends, I could tell she really was a girl who valued friendship.

Perhaps that quality was what drew Marl to Fio when they were in Cywest Village, and that’s why they’re best friends now.

We were led by Fio, who was overflowing with determination now, and we went walking around the very spacious and vast Deep Green.

The large sized bugs and large-legged birds meant for riding would sometimes stop in place, and call out to us and ask if we wanted to ride, but we refused, having decided that we were fine as we were with walking.

As we continued walking, I got the feeling that we were moving through a forest bath, while enjoying the smell of the almost too dark green leaves around us.

The large sized bugs have a variety of outer appearances so there are many choices people could choose from, but the large-legged birds would be easier to raise because they have less endurance than horses, and their eggs can be used for food. It would be worth it to consider raising them in Bern Village.

We threw away our now empty cups of grape juice into the trash cans that were placed here and there throughout the streets, and then went to stuff our faces with skewered rainbow mushrooms upon Fio’s recommendation. While eating, my ears picked up on an instrument that sounded like a koto, but it was made of branches, leaves, and leaf stems, and played by a Wood Elf poet.

It wasn’t just the Wood Elf. A symphony of flapping wings made by the dragonfly-people, the chorus of chirps echoing from the bird-people, and the hobbits who played all kinds of sounds from blowing on just a single leaf — the city was overflowing with rich sounds that could fill up their listeners’ hearts.

「This is still before the festival even starts. Just how lively will it be once the actual start date comes? Or perhaps when the Priestess Princess shows up in front of Yggdrasil, will everyone become more quiet?」

When I asked Fio those questions in a panic, the young Wood Elf girl just shook her head with a smile.

「No, it won’t be like that. Yggdrasil doesn’t hate it when it’s lively, and this is also a chance for the Priestess to show off the results of her training, so everyone always has a lot of fun.

The real deal starts tomorrow, so it’ll only get even more busy from here on. The city will be filled with all kinds of sounds and scents. Fufu, since Dran and Selina are not used to it, they might become overwhelmed」